JIMMY CONNORS ARRESTED

Tennis star Jimmy Connors has been arrested at a college basketball game in California, the Associated Press reported on Saturday.

The eight-time grand slam champion was taken into custody after refusing to leave an area near the entrance to the Thunderdome arena in Santa Barbara, campus police said.

A police official told AP that Connors was taken into custody before the start of the men's game between University College Santa Barbara and North Carolina.

No other details of the arrest were made available, but an employee at Santa Barbara County jail said that Connors had not been charged with an offense as of Saturday morning local time.

Connors is one of the all-time tennis greats, having been ranked as world number one for five consecutive years in the 1970s.

He was also renowned for his fiery temperament on the court as he battled his way to 109 career titles.

The 56-year-old returned to the mainstream tennis fold by acting as coach to American number one Andy Roddick, but their near two-year relationship ended earlier this year.